We are constantly hearing about how our society is too dependent on technology, and that many young people are failing to acquire meaningful, social interaction skills. However, technology is by no means completely bad, it just has to be used in the right way. This class proves the point that using technology in school helps to facilitate learning, especially because it helps to organize quick thoughts and ideas. I’ll admit, when Evernote was first introduced to me, I was extremely skeptical of the whole thing. I liked the idea of physically having my own notebook that I could keep with me at all times. However, I gave it a try, and I learned to like it. It helped me to stay organized, and now that finals are coming up, I am so glad that I have all of these labeled notebooks to help me.
At first, I wasn’t quite sure how to start using my Evernote account. The first thing that I did was to create a notebook titled “A Hope in the Unseen” (our first book). After each chapter, I created a new note and wrote both a summary and a reaction. This proved to be helpful, because with a click of a button, I could recall what I read and what I was thinking while I was reading, and then I could easily contribute those points to the class discussion. Later, after I finished the book, I created a table of contents that created a link to each chapter, which made it even easier. I continued to do this with all of the books that we read. Every time we discussed something new in class, I created a new notebook. Aside from the notebooks about the books that we read, I finished the semester with the following notebook titles: “Academic Autobiography Links,” “Deep Learning,” “Using Evernote,” Poverty in Schools,” School Reform Project,” and “Misc.” By organizing my information like this, I found that I could find and collect my own ideas much easier, and to recall them in class. However, I never figured out how to use the tags, or the note links. I think that at this point, I am getting along fine without them, because I only have a few notebooks. However, as I continue to build my Evernote account and add more notebooks, these tools may become necessary to help me to better navigate my notes.
Furthermore, I learned how to make good use of the web clipper to back up my discussion points and to cite my ideas. In the beginning, I wasn’t quite sure what the difference was between the Web Clipper and simply typing in the URL and looking it up online. However, after I spent some time playing around with it, I realized that with the click of a button, I could simplify articles and save them directly to any notebook that I wanted. Then, in Evernote, I could highlight and annotate the article itself. Later, I would put the important points in my own words, and keep them right there in the same notebook. For example, I did this with my school reform project. In that particular notebook, I had my annotated articles, as well as my own notes. On top of that, I created a table to contents so that I could easily access all of my annotated sources. The web clipper definitely facilitated the research process, and helped me to easily access the information that I found.
Throughout the semester, I have been actively looking for ways to deepen my learning, and to do more than the surface learning that I did in High School. In an attempt to do this, I created a note in my miscellaneous notebook entitled “Teacher Tricks.” Every time we discussed important teacher tactics or attitudes, I made a quick note in this notebook. Some bullet points include “You can’t really change other people’s problems, you can only change how you cause or react to the problem,” “Don’t think that you aren’t part of the problem,” “Good teachers are willing to change,” “Have role models,” and “Safety is the primary purpose of school.” I am hoping to maintain this notebook throughout my college education, and to keep adding to it whenever an important point comes up. That way, when I finally become a teacher, I can look back on this notebook and put those ideas into action. I consider this deep learning because I am planning to apply what I learned in school to my life as a teacher, and to use that information to improve my own classroom.
Evernote has helped to prove that technology can be a useful tool when it comes to learning, especially when trying to organize ideas. Personally, it helped me to be better organized, and made me reflect on the information that I “clipped” with the Web Clipper. In addition to Evernote, Zotero cut my citation time in half (once I figured out how to use it). These programs both seemed overwhelming at first, and took some getting used to. However, once I learned how to use them and got comfortable with them, they changed my learning techniques for the better, and I plan to continue using them.
At first, I wasn’t quite sure how to start using my Evernote account. The first thing that I did was to create a notebook titled “A Hope in the Unseen” (our first book). After each chapter, I created a new note and wrote both a summary and a reaction. This proved to be helpful, because with a click of a button, I could recall what I read and what I was thinking while I was reading, and then I could easily contribute those points to the class discussion. Later, after I finished the book, I created a table of contents that created a link to each chapter, which made it even easier. I continued to do this with all of the books that we read. Every time we discussed something new in class, I created a new notebook. Aside from the notebooks about the books that we read, I finished the semester with the following notebook titles: “Academic Autobiography Links,” “Deep Learning,” “Using Evernote,” Poverty in Schools,” School Reform Project,” and “Misc.” By organizing my information like this, I found that I could find and collect my own ideas much easier, and to recall them in class. However, I never figured out how to use the tags, or the note links. I think that at this point, I am getting along fine without them, because I only have a few notebooks. However, as I continue to build my Evernote account and add more notebooks, these tools may become necessary to help me to better navigate my notes.
Furthermore, I learned how to make good use of the web clipper to back up my discussion points and to cite my ideas. In the beginning, I wasn’t quite sure what the difference was between the Web Clipper and simply typing in the URL and looking it up online. However, after I spent some time playing around with it, I realized that with the click of a button, I could simplify articles and save them directly to any notebook that I wanted. Then, in Evernote, I could highlight and annotate the article itself. Later, I would put the important points in my own words, and keep them right there in the same notebook. For example, I did this with my school reform project. In that particular notebook, I had my annotated articles, as well as my own notes. On top of that, I created a table to contents so that I could easily access all of my annotated sources. The web clipper definitely facilitated the research process, and helped me to easily access the information that I found.
Throughout the semester, I have been actively looking for ways to deepen my learning, and to do more than the surface learning that I did in High School. In an attempt to do this, I created a note in my miscellaneous notebook entitled “Teacher Tricks.” Every time we discussed important teacher tactics or attitudes, I made a quick note in this notebook. Some bullet points include “You can’t really change other people’s problems, you can only change how you cause or react to the problem,” “Don’t think that you aren’t part of the problem,” “Good teachers are willing to change,” “Have role models,” and “Safety is the primary purpose of school.” I am hoping to maintain this notebook throughout my college education, and to keep adding to it whenever an important point comes up. That way, when I finally become a teacher, I can look back on this notebook and put those ideas into action. I consider this deep learning because I am planning to apply what I learned in school to my life as a teacher, and to use that information to improve my own classroom.
Evernote has helped to prove that technology can be a useful tool when it comes to learning, especially when trying to organize ideas. Personally, it helped me to be better organized, and made me reflect on the information that I “clipped” with the Web Clipper. In addition to Evernote, Zotero cut my citation time in half (once I figured out how to use it). These programs both seemed overwhelming at first, and took some getting used to. However, once I learned how to use them and got comfortable with them, they changed my learning techniques for the better, and I plan to continue using them.